Lange XT3 140

[DarthMarkus]

I skied and toured on the xt3 140 for the first time today. I molded them and did some light grinds on the 5th metatarsal and slightly lateral to my heel where my achilles attaches. In addition to that I also wore them while I was at my desk & around my house, and I pulled the spoiler out of the back. I'm coming out of the cochise 130.

I know from previous experience how much I hate getting into new boots... I hate breaking them in, I hate problem shooting pressure points. I hate the whole process. I hope the snowboarder that ran me over and broke my boots gets his due karma...

Anyway, if it's any consolation to anyone here, these boots are no exception to the rule. I'm confident they will perform at the level I could expect from my cochise 130s, but they also have to be broken in still. Even after all the initial modifications, I will probably need a slight punch on my 1st metatarsal. All generally normal things when you're dealing with a fairly high performing boot.

The boots aren't as tight as my cochise 130s on the instep, but they also hug my heel and forefoot a bit better. I've already moved the top ladders over to as far as they can go, and I'm on about the 3rd rung. Depending on how much the liners pack out, I may drill new holes. This is probably the biggest worry for me in these - I have tiny ankles. Salomon, atomic, and the most recently tecnicas have been what I've needed. I hope these boots won't get to a point where I'm deforming the top shell to get the volume right.

Touring was actually pretty nice, these have a good ROM, and I like the lateral stability when I'm on the skin track on steeper pitches. Sometimes snow got into the walk lever which made it kinda hard to go back into ski mode. Not sure how to avoid this.

Skiing ability will take a little more time as I skied mostly low-angle terrain today.

[SoVT Joey]

I skied and toured on the xt3 140 for the first time today. I molded them and did some light grinds on the 5th metatarsal and slightly lateral to my heel where my achilles attaches. In addition to that I also wore them while I was at my desk & around my house, and I pulled the spoiler out of the back. I'm coming out of the cochise 130.

I know from previous experience how much I hate getting into new boots... I hate breaking them in, I hate problem shooting pressure points. I hate the whole process. I hope the snowboarder that ran me over and broke my boots gets his due karma...

Anyway, if it's any consolation to anyone here, these boots are no exception to the rule. I'm confident they will perform at the level I could expect from my cochise 130s, but they also have to be broken in still. Even after all the initial modifications, I will probably need a slight punch on my 1st metatarsal. All generally normal things when you're dealing with a fairly high performing boot.

The boots aren't as tight as my cochise 130s on the instep, but they also hug my heel and forefoot a bit better. I've already moved the top ladders over to as far as they can go, and I'm on about the 3rd rung. Depending on how much the liners pack out, I may drill new holes. This is probably the biggest worry for me in these - I have tiny ankles. Salomon, atomic, and the most recently tecnicas have been what I've needed. I hope these boots won't get to a point where I'm deforming the top shell to get the volume right.

Touring was actually pretty nice, these have a good ROM, and I like the lateral stability when I'm on the skin track on steeper pitches. Sometimes snow got into the walk lever which made it kinda hard to go back into ski mode. Not sure how to avoid this.

Skiing ability will take a little more time as I skied mostly low-angle terrain today.

Mine froze in walk mode. I had to kick the lug back in with the toe of my other boot. And the walk mode has popped open on me skiing countless times now. As far as I’m concerned the boot is great skiing but it’s walk mode design is garbage and makes the boot worthless except for a 45 minute in bounds walk. I got iced 3 miles out a trail. Fuck that. I’ll take the metal lock out of the Cochise, ascendants, hawks, solly, hoji , and all other touring boots over that piece of shit.

I’ve never been so dissatisfied and disappointed in a product as I am in that boot.

[oceans]

Mine froze in walk mode. I had to kick the lug back in with the toe of my other boot. And the walk mode has popped open on me skiing countless times now. As far as I’m concerned the boot is great skiing but it’s walk mode design is garbage and makes the boot worthless except for a 45 minute in bounds walk. I got iced 3 miles out a trail. Fuck that. I’ll take the metal lock out of the Cochise, ascendants, hawks, solly, hoji , and all other touring boots over that piece of shit.

I’ve never been so dissatisfied and disappointed in a product as I am in that boot.

Interesting. Are there other longterm reviews?

[robnow]

Mine froze in walk mode. I had to kick the lug back in with the toe of my other boot. And the walk mode has popped open on me skiing countless times now. As far as I’m concerned the boot is great skiing but it’s walk mode design is garbage and makes the boot worthless except for a 45 minute in bounds walk. I got iced 3 miles out a trail. Fuck that. I’ll take the metal lock out of the Cochise, ascendants, hawks, solly, hoji , and all other touring boots over that piece of shit.

I’ve never been so dissatisfied and disappointed in a product as I am in that boot.

Are you going back into Ski mode with buckles undone? I realized at some point that when the cuff buckles are tight, the plastic piece on the inside that moves up/down sometimes doesn’t have room to move (pressed against the liner) so won’t switch from Walk to Ski or vice versa. Now I make sure to hit the switch first before buckling.

[SoVT Joey]

No. There was Ice packed in and built up under the lug that drops back into the spine to lock the boot back. I have noticed what you are talking about though, I usually figure out my boot has gone to walk mode when I’m unbuckling my boots to get on the lift. Suddenly I will have full ROM.

The icing of that walk mode honestly might of been a perfect storm. It was -5 below zero and I was hot and sweaty and I think that my leg was actually heating up the mechanism in there enough to build up condensation and grab snow when I was out of my skis walking around.

[JaytaeMoney]

Minor thread hijack here: does anyone know the best place to find replacement soles for RX 130 LV's? They're the 2016ish version (all black with green buckles). I'm coming up empty on google... looks like there are some out there but they are expensive ($80) and I'm not sure if they will work.

I see some gripwalk soles on the Lange website but no link to order them. I'm also pretty sure I have some older RX 130 LV's in storage (green/white shells) so maybe I could re-use those soles if they're in decent shape?

[dcpnz]

^^^ I've always called and ordered them directly from Lange/ Rossi/ Dynastar. Used to be a customer service phone number on US website. No idea if they still have it or are answering it in the covid era.

Also saw some on fleabay last time I was looking

[Dee Hubbs]

^^ 1-435-252-3300. Call them, they are very helpful.

[JaytaeMoney]

Sweet, thx

[GoldMember]

Are you going back into Ski mode with buckles undone? I realized at some point that when the cuff buckles are tight, the plastic piece on the inside that moves up/down sometimes doesn’t have room to move (pressed against the liner) so won’t switch from Walk to Ski or vice versa. Now I make sure to hit the switch first before buckling.

I've noticed this, too. When in walk mode then switching, I've had to kind of work them at times to get back in ski mode but it's not been too big of a deal. I haven't had the icing problem that Joey had but haven't been in the same conditions. I have skied with them in walk mode without realizing it but figured I stayed out of the back seat so it wasn't an issue. Could be bad if you went backseat while in walk mode, though...

[DarthMarkus]

Have a few days on these things now. I'm still somewhat reserved, but a few thoughts:

I really don't like the stock liner. I skied a few days on it and felt like I needed to really crank in my buckles to get it tight enough for my tiny ankles; then when I did, I'd get a lot of pressure on my medial malleolus. Could be an issue with my footbeds though. I ended up throwing some intuitions from my TX comps into the boots and I like the result much more so far.

I put a power strap on my pair. Thought I'd like it, but I actually like the flex of the boot more with the stock strap. I believe the forward lean is agressive enough that getting the boot to flex is easier than other boots that would stand you more upright. I also find the boots a bit more susceptible to fluctuating temperatures. The difference between flexing the boot inside vs. in snow seems bigger than a lot of other boots. Even a lot of lange boots.

The forward lean I have mixed feelings about. On one hand, it encourages a much more technical stance. On the other hand, it's also catered toward being a freeride boot and a touring boot. As someone who mounts his skis forward of recommended a lot of the time, I also find a really aggressive forward lean less necessary than other skiers.

I dinked around with the single cuff adjustment that the boot has... I couldn't get it to budge. I'm fairly bowlegged, so this kinda bummed me out. Not sure if you can actually mave the cuff.

Still need some time to break in the intuitions in a new boot, more updates to come.

[YoEddy]

Interesting perception/input on forward lean as they are comparatively upright at 12° with a 4° ramp angle. That said I can't remember if the XT3 came with a cuff shim (?) and/or if you're comment is based on having that in the boot? I've been skiing in all forms of Lange boots for a while and really like the consistency of their fwd lean and ramp angles, but maybe that's because I'm getting old & creaky.

[oceans]

Interesting perception/input on forward lean as they are comparatively upright at 12° with a 4° ramp angle. That said I can't remember if the XT3 came with a cuff shim (?) and/or if you're comment is based on having that in the boot? I've been skiing in all forms of Lange boots for a while and really like the consistency of their fwd lean and ramp angles, but maybe that's because I'm getting old & creaky.

The XT3 140 Pro model has a spoiler, presumably similar to the RS model this results in a forward lean of 16° instead of 12°.

[auvgeek]

My bootfitter couldn't get them to fit my relatively wide feet. After several sessions of punching, my bare foot was still touching the shell pretty much everywhere* with a lot of pressure on my fifth met head and styloid process (*except 5-10 mm in length). I ended up having to trade out to the Shift Pro 130, which is ginormous over the instep but fits much better in width. So I guess my warning is that even tho these are PU, they're quite thin and don't punch like an alpine boot. Maybe that's obvious to everyone here, but at the start of the season, the boot fitter was pretty confident he could make them work for me.

The stupid foam boot board is incredibly fragile, and broke on me the first day I skied them. Stupid design.

Overall comparing the XT 140 and the Shift Pro 130: the XT 140 has much better forward ROM in walk mode. They seem to flex pretty similarly, thought the XT 140 felt maybe sightly more progressive with more rebound. If I fit into the XT 140, I'd pick it over the Shift Pro for sure for the way it walks and skis (durability and walk mode concerns aside).

Also heard rumors that the XT140 walk mode is being changed next year because so many people have had issues with it.

[SoVT Joey]

My bootfitter couldn't get them to fit my relatively wide feet. After several sessions of punching, my bare foot was still touching the shell pretty much everywhere* with a lot of pressure on my fifth met head and styloid process (*except 5-10 mm in length). I ended up having to trade out to the Shift Pro 130, which is ginormous over the instep but fits much better in width. So I guess my warning is that even tho these are PU, they're quite thin and don't punch like an alpine boot. Maybe that's obvious to everyone here, but at the start of the season, the boot fitter was pretty confident he could make them work for me.

The stupid foam boot board is incredibly fragile, and broke on me the first day I skied them. Stupid design.

Overall comparing the XT 140 and the Shift Pro 130: the XT 140 has much better forward ROM in walk mode. They seem to flex pretty similarly, thought the XT 140 felt maybe sightly more progressive with more rebound. If I fit into the XT 140, I'd pick it over the Shift Pro for sure for the way it walks and skis (durability and walk mode concerns aside).

Also heard rumors that the XT140 walk mode is being changed next year because so many people have had issues with it.

Did you try the xt3 130 in the 100 last?

[gregL]

Do you think think this would be a good candidate for me? My XT130Free (100mm) are getting tired. I’ve always gone wide (100) to get the instep height I’ve needed.
Do you think I could I go with the 97’s?

I think you'll have to go with the 100mm last to get the instep height you need in the XT3 as well.

[gregL]

The XT3 140 Pro model has a spoiler, presumably similar to the RS model this results in a forward lean of 16° instead of 12°.

The stock XT3 (no spoiler or even velcro for attaching one) has a little more forward lean than my XT Free 130 LV or RS 130 - I'd say it's 13 degrees, which would put the 140 at around 15.

[Name Redacted]

Have a few days on these things now. I'm still somewhat reserved, but a few thoughts:

I really don't like the stock liner. I skied a few days on it and felt like I needed to really crank in my buckles to get it tight enough for my tiny ankles; then when I did, I'd get a lot of pressure on my medial malleolus. Could be an issue with my footbeds though. I ended up throwing some intuitions from my TX comps into the boots and I like the result much more so far.

Did you cook the stock liners? My boot fitter also punched some stuff out and I got new footbeds.

They fit me really good now, but getting in and out is excruciating and that is my main complaint, but I’m like that with almost all boots.

Also. The upper buckles are a weird angle, I can’t tighten them down as tight as I need to because they are at such a 90 degree angle to my arm I can’t get leverage. Does that make sense?

Otherwise the XT140 skis really well for me. Even made me like a pair of skis that I’ve always hated.

[GoldMember]

They fit me really good now, but getting in and out is excruciating and that is my main complaint, but I’m like that with almost all boots.

I have the same complaint with my XT3 130. They are a pain in the ass to put on and take off, more so than any other boots I've had. If not for the walk mode, I'm not sure I would ever get them on. That at least gives me some more room to maneuver my foot into them. I like how they fit and ski, though, once on.

[gregL]

They are a pain in the ass to put on and take off, more so than any other boots I've had.

You clearly haven't had a Zero G Tour Pro or a Hawx Ultra XTD (the primary competition), the XT3 is a piece of cake after a few years with those.

[Name Redacted]

I have the same complaint with my XT3 130. They are a pain in the ass to put on and take off, more so than any other boots I've had. If not for the walk mode, I'm not sure I would ever get them on. That at least gives me some more room to maneuver my foot into them. I like how they fit and ski, though, once on.

The painful part is that I have to pull the tongue past the liner to get my foot in/out. Which means scraping the top of my foot on the plastic shell. Ouchy!

[GravityDT]

You clearly haven't had a Zero G Tour Pro or a Hawx Ultra XTD (the primary competition), the XT3 is a piece of cake after a few years with those.

Or Maestrale XTs.... no fun taking off on a cold day


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[mr_pretzel]

The painful part is that I have to pull the tongue past the liner to get my foot in/out. Which means scraping the top of my foot on the plastic shell. Ouchy!

Force the lower shells apart with your hands, don’t expect the liner/ tongue to take care of it.

[GoldMember]

Force the lower shells apart with your hands, don’t expect the liner/ tongue to take care of it.

You assume some of us can bend over far enough to make that happen.... And yes, that's the key but still hard, especially when they're cold.

[Name Redacted]

You assume some of us can bend over far enough to make that happen.... And yes, that's the key but still hard, especially when they're cold.

Haha exactly. I can’t touch my shins.